Doing Business 2011

   

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Among the world's economies, Kazakhstan improved business regulation the most in the past year, according to Doing Business 2011: Making a Difference for Entrepreneurs, the eighth in a series of annual reports published by IFC and the World Bank.
Kazakhstan improved conditions for starting a business, obtaining construction permits, protecting investors, and trading across borders. As a result, it moved up 15 places in the rankings on the ease of doing business—to 59 among 183 economies. Two other regional economies, Tajikistan and Hungary, were also among the 10 most-improved economies, climbing 10 places and six places respectively.
This year's list of the 10 most-improved economies also includes three in Sub-Saharan Africa—Rwanda (a consistent reformer of business regulation), Cape Verde, and Zambia—as well as Peru, Vietnam, Grenada, and Brunei Darussalam.
Globally, doing business remains easiest in the high-income economies of the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development and most difficult in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. But developing economies are increasingly active. In the past year, 66 percent reformed business regulation, up from 34 percent six years earlier.
In the past five years, about 85 percent of the world's economies have made it easier for local entrepreneurs to operate, through 1,511 improvements to business regulation. Doing Business 2011 pioneers a new measure showing how much business regulation has changed in 174 economies since 2005. China and India are among the top 40 most-improved economies. Among the top 30 most-improved economies, a third are from Sub-Saharan Africa.
Worldwide, more than half the regulatory changes recorded in the past year eased business start-up, trade, and the payment of taxes. Many of the improvements involve new technologies. "New technology underpins regulatory best practice around the world," said Janamitra Devan, Vice President for Financial and Private Sector Development for the World Bank Group. "Technology makes compliance easier, less costly, and more transparent."
For the fifth year running, Singapore leads in the ease of doing business, followed by Hong Kong SAR China, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Among the top 25 economies, 18 made things even easier over the past year.
"Governments worldwide have been consistently taking steps to empower local entrepreneurs," said Neil Gregory, Acting Director, Global Indicators and Analysis, World Bank Group. "The economies most affected by the financial crisis—especially in Eastern Europe—have been targeting regulatory reforms over the past year to make it easier for small and medium-size enterprises to recover and to create jobs."
(To πρώτο νούμερο αφορά το 2011 και το δεύτερο το 2010 σχετικά με την ευκολία δημιουργίας και ανάπτυξης επιχειρήσεων στις χώρες)

1 1 Singapore 0
2 2 Hong Kong SAR, China 2
3 3 New Zealand 1
4 4 United Kingdom 2
5 5 United States 0
6 6 Denmark 2
7 9 Canada 2
8 7 Norway 0
9 8 Ireland 0
10 10 Australia 0
11 12 Saudi Arabia 4
12 13 Georgia 4
13 11 Finland 0
14 18 Sweden 3
15 14 Iceland 0
16 15 Korea, Rep. 1
17 17 Estonia 3
18 19 Japan 1
19 16 Thailand 1
20 20 Mauritius 1
21 23 Malaysia 3
22 21 Germany 1
23 26 Lithuania 5
24 27 Latvia 2
25 22 Belgium 1
26 28 France 0
27 24 Switzerland 0
28 25 Bahrain 1
29 30 Israel 1
30 29 Netherlands 1
31 33 Portugal 2
32 31 Austria 1
33 34 Taiwan, China 2
34 32 South Africa 0
35 41 Mexico 2
36 46 Peru 4
37 35 Cyprus 0
38 36 Macedonia, FYR 2
39 38 Colombia 1
40 37 United Arab Emirates 2
41 40 Slovak Republic 0
42 43 Slovenia 3
43 53 Chile 2
44 47 Kyrgyz Republic 1
45 42 Luxembourg 1
46 52 Hungary 4
47 49 Puerto Rico 0
48 44 Armenia 1
49 48 Spain 3
50 39 Qatar 0
51 51 Bulgaria 2
52 50 Botswana 0
53 45 St. Lucia 0
54 55 Azerbaijan 2
55 58 Tunisia 2
56 54 Romania 2
57 57 Oman 0
58 70 Rwanda 3
59 74 Kazakhstan 4
60 59 Vanuatu 0
61 67 Samoa 1
62 61 Fiji 1
63 82 Czech Republic 2
64 56 Antigua and Barbuda 0
65 60 Turkey 0
66 65 Montenegro 3
67 77 Ghana 2
68 64 Belarus 4
69 68 Namibia 0
70 73 Poland 1
71 66 Tonga 1
72 62 Panama 2
73 63 Mongolia 0
74 69 Kuwait 0
75 72 St. Vincent and the Grenadines 0
76 84 Zambia 3
77 71 Bahamas, The 0
78 88 Vietnam 3
79 78 China 1
80 76 Italy 1
81 79 Jamaica 1
82 81 Albania 1
83 75 Pakistan 1
84 89 Croatia 2
85 96 Maldives 1
86 80 El Salvador 0
87 83 St. Kitts and Nevis 0
88 85 Dominica 0
89 90 Serbia 1
90 87 Moldova 1
91 86 Dominican Republic 0
92 98 Grenada 3
93 91 Kiribati 0
94 99 Egypt, Arab Rep. 2
95 92 Seychelles 1
96 106 Solomon Islands 1
97 95 Trinidad and Tobago 0
98 94 Kenya 2
99 93 Belize 0
100 101 Guyana 3
101 100 Guatemala 0
102 102 Sri Lanka 0
103 108 Papua New Guinea 1
104 103 Ethiopia 1
105 104 Yemen, Rep. 0
106 105 Paraguay 1
107 111 Bangladesh 2
108 123 Marshall Islands 1

109  97 Greece 0

110 110 Bosnia and Herzegovina 2
111 107 Jordan 2
112 117 Brunei Darussalam 3
113 109 Lebanon 1
114 114 Morocco 1
115 113 Argentina 0
116 112 Nepal 0
117 119 Nicaragua 1
118 126 Swaziland 2
119 118 Kosovo 0
120 120 Palau 0
121 115 Indonesia 3
122 129 Uganda 2
123 116 Russian Federation 2
124 122 Uruguay 1
125 121 Costa Rica 0
126 130 Mozambique 1
127 124 Brazil 1
128 125 Tanzania 0
129 131 Iran, Islamic Rep. 3
130 127 Ecuador 1
131 128 Honduras 0
132 142 Cape Verde 3
133 132 Malawi 2
134 135 India 2
135 133 West Bank and Gaza 1
136 136 Algeria 0
137 134 Nigeria 0
138 137 Lesotho 0
139 149 Tajikistan 3
140 138 Madagascar 2
141 139 Micronesia, Fed. Sts. 0
142 140 Bhutan 1
143 143 Sierra Leone 3
144 144 Syrian Arab Republic 3
145 147 Ukraine 3
146 141 Gambia, The 0
147 145 Cambodia 1
148 146 Philippines 2
149 148 Bolivia 0
150 150 Uzbekistan 0
151 154 Burkina Faso 4
152 151 Senegal 0
153 155 Mali 3
154 153 Sudan 0
155 152 Liberia 0
156 158 Gabon 0
157 156 Zimbabwe 3
158 157 Djibouti 0
159 159 Comoros 0
160 162 Togo 0
161 160 Suriname 0
162 163 Haiti 1
163 164 Angola 1
164 161 Equatorial Guinea 0
165 167 Mauritania 0
166 166 Iraq 0
167 165 Afghanistan 0
168 173 Cameroon 1
169 168 Côte d’Ivoire 1
170 172 Benin 1
171 169 Lao PDR 1
172 170 Venezuela, RB 1
173 171 Niger 1
174 174 Timor-Leste 1
175 179 Congo, Dem. Rep. 3
176 175 Guinea-Bissau 1
177 177 Congo, Rep. 1
178 176 São Tomé and Principe 1
179 178 Guinea 0
180 180 Eritrea 0
181 181 Burundi 1
182 182 Central African Republic 0
183 183 Chad 0

Note: The rankings for all economies are benchmarked to June 2010 and reported in the country tables. This year’s rankings on the ease of doing business are the average of the economy’s rankings on 9 topics (see box 1.1).
Last year’s rankings, shown in italics, are adjusted: they are based on the same 9 topics and reflect data corrections. The number of business regulation reforms includes all measures making it easier to do business.
Source: Doing Business database.